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Thursday, November 20, 2014

Every 3rd Wednesday we have a class that we call "Bug Club." It is a class that we have had for years now and basically we are just a fun group of crafty women who meet each month, share our creations, learn a new technique, eat a few snacks, and just enjoy each others company! Can anyone be a part of it...YES!! Cost is $25 and that gets you a Kit, the class project and lots of laughs!!

Here are a few photos of what we did last night! Each of us got to choose a rectangle or a square wood "canvas," which we painted with the base color of our choice.

Next we applied one of the Hazel and Ruby Stencils. That was the hardest part! There are TWO sheets in this set and they are all good!! It was really neat to see what everyone put together!

After the stencils were applied, we then painted our second color which would be the main color that everyone would see when they were complete.

Finally we were ready to peal up the stencils to reveal the color underneath!! Everyone we so please with how they turned out!!

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

I just got this little toutorial from Susan at SRM- and I just had to share it with you!! AND... we just happen to have a bunch or their new vinyl coming too!!

Many customers have asked about Vinyl and Glass Etching. You use matte vinyl as a stencil! Yes, that's one of the many great things that you can do with vinyl. Today I'd like to share with you a fun and fabulous project from Kristen Swain, a long time user of vinyl and a great friend and fan of SRM!

It's a coffee mug etched with the words I {heart} COFFEE and filled with sweet treats. Kristen loves the look of etched glass. She used Armour Glass Etch in this project and matte vinyl in any color to create a stencil.

After cutting your vinyl, apply your stencil to your cup or glass.

Wear gloves and protect your surface. Dab etching cream onto the class in the open spots on the stencil. You may need to adjust the stencil vinyl to conform to your round shape.

Completely cover the stencil openings. Allow to sit according to directions, then scrape off excess.

Remove remaining etching cream in the sink with water. Then peel off vinyl.

And here's your finished cut with sweet treats inside.

Thanks to Kristen for this wonderful tutorial. She's a vinyl star! You can see more about this project on her blog:

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Ok, so a few weeks ago we had this little "traveling" salesman type guy come into the store and he had this product called "SUDS" that he wanted to show us. I was in the middle of an interview and really did not want to be bothered, but he seemed nice and I know how had sales, and the cold sales market, can be, so I gave him a few minutes of my time.....and man am I ever glad that I did!!

He first used it on our class tables go get the old dried, sticky, gunky glue off....AMAZING! Usually we have to use goo gone and a razor blade and then we have to use a bunch of cleaner to get the oily goo gone off so it does not get on our papers when we have classes!

Next he went around the store and got out the stains in the carpet...the ones that we don't even know where they come from! AND they were still gone DAYS later...and are still gone to this day! So many products you use, the are gone, but mysteriously they reappear a few days later.

THEN, he took an ink pen and a sharpie and wrote on a white towel. He had some of the "SUDS" mixed with water in a spray bottle (kind of like shout) and sprayed it right on the marks he had just made....by now I am sure you know what happened! They just dissappeared!!

By this point I was sold. BUT to really put it to the test, I took the stuff home and tried it on just about everything I could think of!
Grout- worked great!
Stains in the boys' clothes...that had been there forever and washed and dried MANY times....it even got those out!! One of Kyan's "old play clothes" shirts became a shirt he is allowed to wear to school again!!!
Carpet stains....well, I think the pictures below will speak for themselves! And yes, my rug did look that bad! I LOVE that my husband Jeremy LOVES to cook and he makes us amazing things...but OMG, he is the messiest cook in the world!! I blame all of these stains on him!!

Here is the rug before I cleaned it.

I just put a little on an old tooth brush and scrubbed each spot for about 15-20 seconds

When I could tell the stain was lifting...I just rubbed it a little more with a clean rag to pick the stain up...my rag was gross from what the "SUDS" had pulled up!

AND...here it is!!! MUCH better!! and YES, it is safe to add SUDS directly into your carpet cleaner water!!

If the wheels are turning and you are already thinking of a bunch of places that you need to try SUDS we have it in-stock and the price is $22.00...BUT if you call and pre-pay for it Today or Tomorrow 11/21/13 and 11/22/13, we will drop the price down to just $20 for a 16 fl oz tub!!

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

We are SO Excited that our Project Life has finally arrived!! Beck Higgins started this "new" way of documenting our memories a couple of years ago and now it is available for the independent stores to carry too!

IF you are new to this way to document your memories....here is a little video she did at CHA this past summer!

There are MANY companies that make these types of products...such as Simple Stories and We R Memory Keepers...and we carry most of their lines too!!

Here is a little sample of what the 12x12 pages look like!

This is a GREAT way to get caught up, scrapbook and event or trip that you took WAY too many pictures at, or a way to scrapbook for those that feel they are not very crafty!! Anyone can slip a picture or card into a slot!!! This is even a great way to get your kids scrapbooking too!

Friday, June 28, 2013

We all LOVE scrapbooking...and we all really love FREE, so we have combined two of your favorite things!!

The Album Club is designed to help motivate all you ladies we hear say, "I have such a hard time making time to scrapbook!" We are hoping that this will give you that motivation, and as a little bonus for us, we rarely get to see the awe-some pages our customers create, so this al-lows us to see what you do! Here’s how it works. You pay $5 to join during the month of June ($10 to sign up after June) and complete 50 layouts within a year and you will get invited to 2 parties with discounts and prizes AND get a FREE 12" Album at the conclusion of the year and with completion of 50 layouts. Layouts can be single or double page layouts but to count, they must include a title, at least 1 picture and some form of journaling. Club members may bring in only 1 page per day, except for 6 selected days where mem-bers can bring in 5 layouts for credit. (that is 30 layouts right there, so even if you don't live super close, the club is still do-able!!) PLUS... Any class taken at the store, will count as a completed page and as a bonus you can also bring in one additional page the night of your class! Stop in to sign up! We have one person that has over 20 pages in so far!!! (Album shown below is not the actual album- we will have 3 different ones for you to choose from!)

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Looking for the Perfect way to give mom her gift? Why not give it to her in a pillow box this year?? The best part...we have this as a die on our AccuCut Machine!!! be sure to stop in, bring in your scrap paper and CUT AWAY!!!

Monday, May 6, 2013

CREATE with Your Die-namics Die from My Favorite Things - Not Just for Paper!

Let's take a look at four types of materials easily cut with Die-namics,!!

A Note About Varying Pressure of Die-Cut Machines: The pressure produced by each machine will vary. Get to know your machine by trying different stack and shim options and keep your *recipes* nearby to make demo-ing a breeze for you.

Chipboard

You can create your own chipboard embellishments with Die-namics dies and thin cardboard, or lightweight chipboard. Chipboard embellishments add great dimension to cards and scrapbook pages.

Supplies- all from My Favorite Things....any of these can be ordered for you!!!

Die-namics: Behind the Camera; Mini Album Bracket STAX; Dainty Doily

Stamps: Behind the Camera

Fabric

Iron-on patches are the simplest way to add fabric to your projects. The patches have a backing that help fabric edges cut cleanly.

When using fabric scraps, make sure to add an iron-on adhesive to the back of the fabric. The backing will make the fabric easier to cut and will help prevent the fabric from fraying.